Criminal Justice, Law and Society, Minor

Introduction

The minor in Criminal Justice, Law and Society (CJLS) is a subset of the major offered by the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, Law and Society. The CJLS major engages students in a multidisciplinary exploration of issues related to crime, justice, and social policy. The intersection of courses in CLJS, Politics and Government, and Sociology provides students with an opportunity to explore theories and philosophies of law and justice in the United States and to grapple with the challenging nature of pursuing justice in a complex social world. By completing the liberal arts-focused CJLS major, students develop a strong foundation to pursue careers in social policy, the juvenile and criminal justice system, and numerous federal, state, and private organizations that address issues of justice in society. Students who complete the CJLS major also develop skills that prepare them for graduate education in a variety of fields, which include, but are not limited to justice studies, law, criminology, political science, sociology, and public administration.

Program Learning Outcomes

Upon completing the Criminal Justice, Law and Society minor, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of how historical and contemporary social and legal contexts have shaped the various components of the criminal justice system.
• Apply criminological theories to explain deviant behaviors and the criminalization of non-conformity.
• Explain the construction of social structures and categories (e.g., race, class, gender) and their influence on laws and law enforcement, including the confluence of resultant criminogenic factors.
• Develop strategies to address issues of social change within the context of the criminal justice system.
• Demonstrate an in-depth understanding of one aspect of criminology, criminal justice, or law and its relationship to larger social issues.
• Communicate criminological concepts and/or research in a manner that is appropriate for the intended audience (e.g., academic, lay, professional).